I'll admit that I'm not proud of how I handled the situation. There were plenty of other things I could have done to express my emotions. Perhaps walking away, pretending as if nothing happened, or even sitting down and talking it out, letting everyone know what a sneaky little, no good, slime ball Chord was. Even just slamming my fist into a wall would have sufficed. That is, it would have sufficed under normal circumstances. As it was, these were no ordinary circumstances.
I stood in the middle of a circle of unconscious men. My hands were shaking though I wasn't sure if it was from the adrenaline rush, my raging nerves or my anger. A single drop of blood dripped from my knuckles, splattering on the ground. The noise sounding abnormally loud in the stillness of the room.
Once I had been transported by the book, I had found myself standing in the middle of this tiny room. A warm fire crackled in the small fireplace, warming the chilled air and four men, each dressed in chainmail and armor with a sword strapped to their side, were huddled around a table playing what looked like some sort of card game.
My sudden appearance had startled them, but they quickly leapt into action, surrounding me and demanding to know where I had come from and what I was doing in the castle.
To be perfectly honest, the rest of it was all a bit of a blur. Once I took the time to register that the two-faced, lying weasel wasn't there with me, I allowed my frustration, anger and fear to take control. Before I knew what was happening, I had managed to get my hands on the poker stick for the fireplace and I was now standing amongst four unconscious men.
I let out a cry of frustration and threw the poker across the room. How could I have fallen for such a stupid trick? I should have known better than to trust Chord. Why did I have to be so helplessly stupid?
"There's no use standing around here." I sighed and stepped over the body of one of the knights. Stopping at the door I shook my finger at the ceiling. "But if you think I'm playing by the rules this time, you're in for a rude awakening. I got out of this stupid curse once, I can do it again. But this time, I'm taking everyone else out with me. I won't let you beat me at this game, Isis." And with that, I strode out of the room with a new sense of determination in my step.
I wasn't sure which tale I had landed myself in this time. Not to mention which character I was playing, if I was even playing a character this round. I didn't particularly care though. I was through with playing another's role. It was time for me to play my own role in this story. I wasn't some damsel in distress that needed saving. I was prepared to show Isis just who she was dealing with. I wasn't a princess. I was a warrior, a huntress, and I had my sights set on my target. There wasn't anything she could throw at me that would keep from reaching that target.
The halls were empty. There wasn't a single sign of life anywhere. The castle couldn't be abandoned I decided. There would have been no use for the knights back there if it was. No, there was someone else here. There had to be. And once I found them, I would be able to get some answers.
When I finally found life, it was in the form of two more knights standing guard at a door in the middle of the hall. As I approached, the one drew his sword. Apparently, I appeared about as friendly as I felt.
"State your business here." The knight with the drawn sword demanded.
I caught a glimpse inside the room and what I saw was a bit confusing. "Why are you guys guarding a room full of hay? The poor guy here is clearly allergic." I motioned to the second guard who nose was as bright red as a tomato and he looked about ready to fall over.
"That is none of your concern," the first knight said, "now state your business or I shall be forced to throw you out."
"That wouldn't be very nice," I said, "I'm only looking for someone."
"Who are you looking for?"
I shrugged. "No idea to be honest. Anybody really."
The knights gave each other a confused look and then turned back to me.
I sighed. "Look, I was dropped off here against my will and now I have to find someone who can tell me which fairytale I'm in so I can find a way to escape it, so I can finally go home and kick some rotten kid's butt."
By their confused faces, I guessed they believed me to be completely off my rocker. "Perhaps we should alert the king."
"There is no need. I am here."
I turned and was greeted by a kindly old man, flanked by two more knights. Perhaps in his early seventies, the old man had kind eyes and a pleasant smile. It did not take long for me to feel at ease in his presence.
"I see you have found the peasant's daughter."
"Excuse me?" I cocked an eyebrow at him. "Who are you calling a peasant?"
The knight with the allergies frowned and managed a muffled, "This is the girl?".
The king nodded fervently. "This is the girl known for spinning straw into gold. By morning, if she does her job well, our kingdom shall be twice as rich as it is today."
I groaned, turned and hit my head against the wall a few times, receiving some strange looks and grumbled, "You have got to be kidding me. There is no freaking way I'm going to end up marrying the old coot and trading my first born to some creepy little man. Scratch that, there's no way I'm even having a first born."
Turning to face the king, I got right up in his face as I said, "If you lock me in that room, you can rest assured that there will be no gold for you in the morning."
His smile slowly faded and was replaced with a look of shock and disbelief. "You dare to defy your king?"
I stepped back. "You're not my king. I don't belong in this story. If you want me to respect you like a king, then you're going to have to give me a good reason to do so."
"Throw her in the room!" He ordered his knights in a fit of anger. "Do not let anyone in or out!"
He turned to me then, an unwavering certainty in his eyes. "If there is no gold in there by morning, I will personally see you hanged for your lack of respect."
"Some king you are."
The knights came forward and grabbed both my arms, dragging me back into the room. I resisted but only slightly. The curse was working its magic once more, forcing me to follow along with the story.
"Think on it, young maiden." The king warned as the door was closed. "Gold? Or your life? Which is more important?"
The lock clicked and I lost it. Immediately turning around, I overturned the spinning wheel and threw the stool across the room where it broke against he back wall and fell to the ground in several pieces. Tears clouded my eyes as I sank to the floor. It was all happening again. I still had nightmares about what had happened the last time and now I was being forced to live it all again. I sat there in the middle of the room, on the stone floor, hugging my knees to my chest as I cried. This can't be happening. This can't be happening. This can't be happening.
What had happened to the girl filled with determination and bravery only a few moments ago? Where did the girl go who had single-handedly taken on four knights and won? She had left, leaving behind a broken shell of girl, unable to do much more than shake in fear.
I don't know how long I sat there, but eventually, the door to the room opened slightly and a small man slipped through before closing the door quietly behind him again. He was a short man, no taller than three feet, with a pointed hat, black and green striped stockings and an old tattered brown trench coat. In his hand he held a small stick. I guessed it was some sort of walking cane but I wasn't sure, since he held it in both hands and didn't use it for walking.
The little man ambled his way over to me. His beady black eyes looked me over once, took in the overturned spinning wheel behind me and then looked over to where the stool lay broken in pieces. His little red beard twitched as he wrinkled his nose at me.
"Why are you looking so pathetic there? What is with all the crying?" His little voice was deep and gruff and held no sign of any sort of feelings.
I just stared at him. So, the curse wanted me to play along did it? It wasn't going to happen. I absolutely refused. Maybe it would just give up on me and spit me back out into the real world if I refused to say anything.
"Are you going to speak, girl? Or are you dumb?" The man, who I assumed was Rumplestilskin spat at me.
I just raised an eyebrow and then turned to look out the window.
The little man groaned and stroked his beard once. "Alright then, I will help you in your quest to spin straw into gold, but I will not do it for free. I require a price. What do you have?"
I didn't respond or make any indication that I had even heard him.
Apparently, the story was determined to move on, with or without me. "Aha! I shall take your necklace as payment."
It was then that I noticed the gold piece hanging around my neck. The metal burned like ice against my chest and I gladly took it off. "Whatever," I mumbled and threw the necklace at him.
He caught it swiftly and then went to work, waving his hand over the broken stool, it pieced itself back together. Then he sat down at the wheel and began spinning the straw into gold.
It took him nearly three hours, but when he was finished, not a single strand of straw was left in the room.
"I suppose I should tell you thank you." I said. "At least I will not die tomorrow."
Rumple nodded and then vanished.
When the king finally arrived, the sun was shining brightly through the window, casting the room in a golden glow. The old man's eyes were no longer soft and friendly, but filled with greed at the sight of all the gold.
"You have done well." He motioned to the knights behind him, both different from the night before, and they each dutifully came and took hold of my arms. "Take her to the second room."
As we passed by him, the king leaned in and whispered, "If you value your life, you will transform all the straw to gold once more. Perhaps you shall be worth keeping around, just as your father has promised."
"Not on your life old man."
What I did next was impulsive. I didn't think, I just acted. My knee rammed up into the first knight causing him to double over in pain, releasing my arm as he did. I then used my free hand to punch the second knight in the nose. It all happened within a split second. By the time the king registered what was happening and began shouting orders at his knights, I was already out the door.
I didn't know where I was going, or how I would get out of this tale without actually finishing it, but I had to try. Following the stories and going tale by tale didn't work out so well the last time. I had to find a different way out.
Apparently, the curse had different ideas. I raced down the hall where I came face to face with the largest set of double doors I had ever seen. Thinking they must lead into the throne room, I heaved open one of doors and slipped through, only to find myself inside a room similar to the one I had just left but doubled in size. It was the second room where I was meant to weave the straw into gold.
With a cry of frustration, I left the room and headed left down the hall. I tried another door but ended up in the same room. Every where I turned, I always ended up facing the same room full of straw. It was maddening. It didn't matter how far I went, or which way I turned, there was no exit. The curse was messing with me again, forcing me to play my part. I started to panic, frantically throwing open doors and bolting down narrow hallways, but I always ended up in the same room. I ran until I couldn't run anymore.
"NO!" I slammed my fist into the wall and sank down to the floor, defeated. I couldn't handle this. I wasn't strong enough to do this all again. "Why?" I cried, speaking to no one in particular. "Why did it have to be me? What is it that you want with me?"
"There you are!" The king shouted in triumph, coming up beside me. "How dare you defy your king like that! You will spin that straw into gold or you will face a fate far worse then death."
"Haven't I already?" I said, staring the ground.
The knights came forward and forced me to my feet. I could barely move. My body was no longer responding to me the way it should. I'd lost all will to move and relied on the knights to drag me to the room. They threw me inside and I landed hard on the stone floor. Distantly, I heard the door close behind me.
My entire body shook with an overwhelming fear. The fear that I would have to repeat the horrors of the curse. The fear that I wouldn't make it out. The fear that I was completely alone this time. I had no one, and no way out. Worst of all was the fact that no one even knew I was here. Eventually Dixie and August would realize something was wrong when I didn't show up by the morning, but then what? Both of them believed the curse to be destroyed just like I had. There was no hope. I had lost all hope.
Isis watched as Taryn became more and more desperate, darting through the corridors of the castle. The small glowing orb cast a eerie glow across the walls of her cell. Colton slept soundly in the corner, unaware of her antics. Her brother had refused to sleep in the bed since the day they had been thrown in the dingy cell, claiming the floor was far more comfortable than 'that bed of nails they call a mattress'.
Isis frowned as she watched Taryn shout in anger and punch the wall. Blood dripped from her knuckles as she dropped to the floor, though Isis doubted she felt anything or was even aware of the fresh wounds.
She had never seen Taryn like this. Every time she had ever seen the dark-haired girl, she had been spunky and sarcastic. Taryn's bravery and loyalty were two qualities that Isis had always secretly admired.
To be perfectly honest, she had never completely understood her family's hatred for the young girl. Alright, so she and her three siblings were the last of the Ingramens, but that wasn't Taryn's fault. Taryn was the last of the Bauer family and yet she didn't seem to blame or hate Isis and her brother for that. Of course, there were plenty of other reasons Taryn hated them, and if anyone had the right to hate, it was Taryn.
She didn't understand her siblings' obsessions with killing the girl either. What would that accomplish? The girl was so much more entertaining alive. That's why she had refused to reveal Taryn's name to her sister, Iris. Her big sister and brother seemed to think that everything that went wrong in their lives was Taryn's fault and they were determined to cast their revenge on her. Isis almost felt bad for the girl.
She watched as the knights threw Taryn into the room filled with straw. Taryn barely moved from the spot where she'd landed. Her eyes no longer held the same, determined, spunky spark they used to. Isis suddenly had a strange urge to help the pitiful girl. She didn't like seeing her like this. It was unnerving. Unnatural.
Why was she even back inside the curse? Isis had assumed the curse had been destroyed. Without a source, the curse didn't have anything to hold it down. It would have faded away as soon as Taryn had left. How was this even possible?
"Finally," Colton said.
Isis jumped and turned to find him watching over her shoulder. His cold eyes held delight at seeing Taryn in such a vulnerable state.
"It seems as though our big sis has done her job well." He chuckled quietly to himself. "She was right in assuming the girl's spirit would be broken if she was forced back inside her fairytales."
"Doesn't that seem a bit cruel?" Isis asked, turning her focus back to the orb.
The little man had returned. Taryn didn't even flinch as he demanded a payment for helping her and snatched the ring off her finger. Her eyes had become lifeless, devoid of any hope. This was all wrong.
"Don't tell me you're losing your nerve, Isis." Colton sneered.
"Not at all. I just don't understand why we have to keep toying with this girl." She motioned to the image before them. "It's no fun if all the life is drained out of her. Can't we pick a new victim? Someone with a bit more to give?"
"Just be patient," Colton reassured her, "she'll come around and then our young miss Taryn will prove to be just as entertaining as she once was."
"How can you be so sure?"
"Because your brilliant older sister has something special in store for her. Taryn only thinks she's seen the worst. Just wait until she sees what Iris has waiting for her." Colton was beginning to look excited now. "It will be nothing but pure entertainment for us."
Isis sighed. "I suppose."
"You don't believe me?"
She lifted one shoulder in an elegant shrug. "I just don't see how someone so completely devoid of life could possibly be so entertaining," she sighed, "but I suppose I will simply have to wait and see how Iris plans to revive her."
"That's my girl," Colton slapped her back, "hang in there, you'll see."
Ha ha! ok so I'm actually really enjoying Isis' character and where I plan to take her, she's just so gullible and not all that bright sometimes, but at the same time she's incredibly smart so she's a lot of fun to write. Also Iris is going to be fun to write as well since she's a very different villain than Isis ever was! I'm really excited to back writing Taryn's story again and I hope you all are enjoying it just as much :)